--- description: From Aaron Sorkin to Reese Witherspoon, celebrity readers mark the novelist's passing title: Celebrities and Others React to Harper Lee's Death image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltce4163e47b84942a/69887e583c1639cc5a45c1a7/harper-lee1.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Books](/tag/books/) ## Books Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Harper Lee's Death Prompts a Torrent of Tributes by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Jan 24, 2024 1:04 PM CUTPublished: Feb 19, 2016 6:42 PM CUT  Pulitzer Prize winner and 'To Kill A Mockingbird' author Harper Lee smiles before receiving the 2007 Presidential Medal of Freedom in the East Room of the White House November 5, 2007 in Washington, DC. Pulitzer Prize winner and 'To Kill A Mockingbird' author Harper Lee smiles before receiving the 2007 Presidential Medal of Freedom in the East Room of the White House November 5, 2007 in Washington, DC.Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Jan 24, 2024 1:04 PM CUTPublished: Feb 19, 2016 6:42 PM CUT _To Kill a Mockingbird_ is one of the most widely read books in America, often read for the first time in the teen years; as such, many people have a strong emotional reaction to it. Celebrities, politicians and other public figures reacted to the news of author [Harper Lee’s death on Friday](http://time.com/4230580/harper-lee-to-kill-mockingbird-dies-89/?1&xid=homepage "undefined"), quoting their favorite passages from the landmark novel and expressing their remorse at her death. Here are some of their responses. Aaron Sorkin, who is adapting _To Kill a Mockingbird_ for Broadway, issued a short statement honoring the writer: --- > “” --- Reese Witherspoon, who narrated the audiobook for Lee’s _Mockingbird_ sequel _Go Set a Watchman,_ led a host of tributes on social media_:_ > [](https://twitter.com/ABFalecbaldwin/status/700716552241471490) > [](https://twitter.com/AVAETC/status/700710853251731457) > [](https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/700725311911108608) > [](https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/700740638158020608) > [](https://twitter.com/MaraWritesStuff/status/700738046598242306) > [](https://twitter.com/billyeichner/status/700725832445251585) > [](https://twitter.com/johngreen/status/700705320339795969) > [](https://twitter.com/ABC/status/700731625726849024) _Order LIFE’s new special edition,_ The Enduring Legacy of Harper Lee and _To Kill a Mockingbird,_ [_available on_ ](http://amzn.to/1ozqNnQ "undefined")[_Amazon._](http://amzn.to/1ozqNnQ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4230897/harper-lee-celebrity-reactions/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4230897/harper-lee-celebrity-reactions/"},"headline":"Harper Lee's Death Prompts a Torrent of Tributes","datePublished":"2016-02-19T18:42:49.000Z","dateModified":"2024-01-24T13:04:52.000Z","description":"From Aaron Sorkin to Reese Witherspoon, celebrity readers mark the novelist's passing","url":"https://time.com/4230897/harper-lee-celebrity-reactions/","keywords":["Books"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltce4163e47b84942a/69887e583c1639cc5a45c1a7/harper-lee1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltce4163e47b84942a/69887e583c1639cc5a45c1a7/harper-lee1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"harper-lee","caption":"Pulitzer Prize winner and 'To Kill A Mockingbird' author Harper Lee smiles before receiving the 2007 Presidential Medal of Freedom in the East Room of the White House November 5, 2007 in Washington, DC.","creditText":"Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4230897/harper-lee-celebrity-reactions/","name":"Harper Lee's Death Prompts a Torrent of Tributes"}}]}] ```